By Kiyanna Noel
Black Onyx: The Black student Union hosted its annual BSU fashion show Nov. 11 titled “In Your Element.” Members of the audience were encouraged to wear clothes that represent their element of air, earth, fire or water as well as sit in a designated section in the Warren Ballrooms of the Angell College Center.
The decorations in each element were personalized and well-thought out. The air section had white balloons. The earth section had fake green moss with green balloons. The fire section had a red heme with red balloons, artificial candles and red beads. The water section had blue balloons and water in blue cups. Each section also had a designated color-coded parchment paper.
Sections like Earth and Fire had most seats completely filled, while others struggled for audience members. With doors opening at 6:30 p.m., the event itself didn’t fully begin till after 8 p.m.
The hosts for the night were ’23 alumni Phardia Desir and Michael Johnson, who walked down the runway in matching silver outfits. Following their introductions, Desir introduced the first designer.
“Conscious NYC is a staple in fashion bringing imagination and future trends to the present era,” Desir said.
Each of the models were provided by House of Divinity, SUNY Plattsburgh’s modeling club. The clothing style in Conscious NYC is streetwear, including a variety of colors in hoodies, shorts, sweatpants and T-shirts. PJ, the designer, has showcased his designs on campus previously in African Unity’s Mystic Night, but nonetheless in his speech he was extremely grateful for the outpour of love from the audience.
The hosts then proceeded to play a trivia game dedicated to “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” While the game got slightly competitive, the winner was Khalil Moore. The next game allowed audience members to participate in singer Sexy Redd’s Shake Yo Dreads challenge. The challenge encouraged those with locs to shake them, but only three people participated, with one of them not having real locs. Both games did not include any prizes for winners.
The second designer is Joey, who created Dreamers Apparel.
“Next up, ladies and gentlemen, we have another designer. Dreamers Apparel Company is a mobile urban apparel company that is located in Brownsville New York,” Johnson introduced. “They create unique comfortable clothing that fits a variety of lifestyles and cultures. Dreamers Apparel has been inspired by life challenges and achievements. Their apparels are available for the youth and adults from the U.S. to Canada.”
Joey’s designs had a variety of designs, but a common theme was stars. Each piece of clothing the models wore had stars in different shapes which according to Joey represents “diversity.”
Before going to intermission, African Unity Dance: Ausaaa hit the stage. While there were only four dancers performing, they proved quality over quantity and that the power in numbers can apply to a small group. Throughout the performance, the dancers had high energy and suffered only small mistakes that were easily recovered.
Chartwells catered for the event with barbecue wings, rice, salad, fruit and cake pops. The first batch of wings disappeared in the blink of an eye, but luckily it was replenished.
Students then prepared themselves for a Spicy Island Tings dance performance. This performance was highly anticipated by the audience as the big dance group never disappoints. Despite losing the friendly dance competition against High Voltage Dance Factory the night before, Spicy Island Tings still managed to put on a near perfect routine. However, toward the end the stage opened up while three dancers were still dancing, but they easily recovered.
Spooky by Ernei was about how people lived during the pandemic. The clothing style was more streetwear with hats, hoodies, sweaters and T-shirts in specific colors to represent that time. Ernei thanked BSU for having them and explained why he chose the title of his brand.
“I want to tell you guys about the meaning behind my brand: Masks tell us more than a face,” Ernei said. “I know a lot of y’all remember during COVID lots of had to put a mask on and pretend everything was OK and when y’all go home, that’s where the struggle begins, but that’s where I got it from.”
The next sets of designs were from Just Pierre by Sav. This clothing brand had a smaller variety of styles. Ranging from T-shirts to beanies and shorts.
“The brand is made to make statements for more reasons and to spread confidence. Your clothes are your armor,” Sav said.
Coming off a win against Spicy Island Tings, the final performance of the night was High Voltage Dance Factory. The flawless performance showed the audience why HVDF is still one of the best dance teams on campus.
The final design of the night was the brand Hero To All by Kesly Young. Young’s brand had the biggest number of options. From designs on jeans to bags and sweaters, this brand truly has something for everyone.
The night concluded with a speech from BSU’s president Shaniah Fairweather. Fairweather thanked her e-board for their dedication, President of HOD Rashad Nicholas for his patience and the audience for showing love by showing up and promoting their event with hopes of doing another like it in the future.
